Page 22 of Two Chambered Heart

Chapter thirteen

- Jason -

It had been a frustrating day.

It had actually been a really fucking frustrating week, and Jason was sick of everybody. He was sick of having to be out of the house. He was sick of running damage control. And he was tired of pretending to smile at idiots who were also faking their smiles, making nice with his other importers to secure the extra opium supply. Their minds were full of questions—questioning the Haevens, questioning their operations, questioning what had happened to Kovack.

It was headline news that a suspected drug lord’s headquarters had burnt down. Some theories were wild, and others—like a turf war—were a little more on the mark. At the end of the day, Alpha Moneta’s contacts were suspicious. They were made even more so by Alpha Moneta’s request for a significant increase in opium and on such short notice. Jason couldn’t blame them; they had every right to be suspicious.

Of course, nobody voiced any of these concerns out loud, but Jason heard them loud and clear, so he had to tread carefully in securing contracts and appeasing his suppliers. He did not want to have to run further damage control with the pharmaceutical company they sourced to, ZantekMedical, or the two black market manufacturers Alpha Moneta was in alliance with—Allister Kreig ran one of the clandestine chemistry gangs, and Beril Hanson ran the other.

Through years of trial and error, and quite a bit of violence, Alpha Moneta was finally running relatively smoothly. Both Kreig and Hanson had a good relationship with the brothers and genuinely respected them. Jason and Kayden had worked hard to maintain the separation, so that neither Zantek, Kreig, nor Hanson knew exactly where their supply was coming from. That was how the Haevens maintained their power, by making sure they were an essential cog in the machine.

Jason didn’t want to interfere with that.

He just wanted to hole up at home and escape all the noise, as he usually did, but he was also fucking sick of that girl meddling in their kitchen and parading around naked like she owned the place. He was even more pissed that Kay had gotten so hung up on her, panting after her like a fucking bitch in heat.

As Jason pulled his bike in front of the Rover, he noticed immediately that Kay’s bike was gone. Kayden wouldn’t have left the girl upstairs alone, and as he realized Kayden was out with her, he felt a heady mix of anger and envy, like iodine on a wound. He told himself the sharp pang of jealousy was only because his brother was experiencing the world without the noise.

He wanted to be mad at Kayden. For taking the girl out and not letting him know. For how easy it had been for Kayden to accept her into their home. But he wasn’t and he couldn’t. Kayden deserved to be happy.

Jason headed to the elevators. He hit the button for the fifth floor.

As Jason reached the security room at the end of the fifth-floor hallway, Jenkins already had the door open. The man was vigilant in his role as security, one of the many things Jason deeply appreciated about him. He would have caught Jason getting off the elevator on the security feed.

“What brings you over to my neck of the woods?” Jenkins said with his usual chipper smile. Jason handed him the paper shopping bag, the bookstore’s logo printed on the side.

“For your lady.” Jason winked at the security guard.

“Oh ho ho, trying to charm my wife, are we?” Jenkins tutted. “You have any woman you want falling at your feet, and my wife is the one you’re after?”

Jason just smiled and rolled his eyes. He heard that wasn’t what Jenkins thought, and that he appreciated Jason’s gesture.

“I spotted a tent sale at the bookstore on my way home and noticed there was a vegan Indian cookbook. You told me your wife was going vegan. Maybe this will help her get a taste of home out here.”

Jason actually couldn’t recall if Jenkins had told him or thought it, but he gave the book to the man anyway.

Jenkins patted Jason on the shoulder. “You’re too good a man, Jason.” He really believed that.If only he knew, Jason thought to himself.

“I’ll have her cook up some extras and bring it over for you and your brother.”

“Are you working the night shift?” Jason asked.

“No, I’m clocking out shortly.”

“Alright, man. Enjoy the evening with the family, then.”

“Thanks again!” Jenkins called to him from down the hall as Jason hit the button to call the elevator. He just waved back as the doors opened to let him in, and he rode the elevator up to the penthouse, exhausted.

Jason pulled out the new cookbook he’d gotten for himself and rifled through the pages, finding something that he had the ingredients for. Avoiding the world had forced him to get good at cooking. As someone who enjoyed gourmet food, it was either that or ordering in all the time, and takeout just wasn’t the same as a freshly cooked meal.

He had also opted for an Indian cookbook himself, just not the vegan version. Deciding on a Karaikudi chicken curry, he dog-eared the page for later.

Jason leaned against the island, debating if he should work out. He really didn’t feel like it. The setting sun cast a golden glow on the first floor as it set. It had been unseasonably warm out today. Fresh air and quiet seemed much more appealing in that moment. Jason grabbed his bottle of whiskey from its spot on the shelf and went upstairs to change into a bathing suit.

He sent Kayden a quick text to let him know he’d be on the rooftop, as he took the stairs up, whiskey bottle in hand. He didn’t bother with a glass tonight.

Jason sat at the edge of the pool, letting his feet soak in the water and the breeze blow across his bare back. The pool was heated, and the contrast in temperature on his skin raised the hair on his arms. He slugged back a generous gulp of the amber liquid straight from the bottle before taking out his phone and connecting to the Bluetooth speakers, putting on a Sleep Token album.

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